Even by the standards of a booming suburb such as Fishers, the city's announcement Tuesday that it planned a $157 million downtown development project was outsized.

The project will span both sides of 116th Street in the already crowded core of the city and, essentially, wipe clear the last vestiges of an old, quaint downtown. When Browning Investments of Indianapolis finishes building apartments, a hotel, shops and a corporate headquarters, the heart of the Nickel Plate District will be filled to near capacity and the landscape redrawn.

The development caps a furious run of development in the fast-growing city of 90,000, which last year added Ikea near 116th Street, less than a half-mile from downtown, along with other national known franchises Portillo's restaurant and Topgolf.

Construction has begun on the Yard at Nickel Plate District project in the same area, which will feature more than 20 restaurants and shops, a culinary incubator for start-up chefs, a 252-unit apartment building and a Hyatt Place hotel.

"Our plan has always been to develop out this part of 116th Street, and we are moving forward accordingly," Mayor Scott Fadness said. "Our plan is to increase density and walkabilty, and that's what we are doing."

The project near the Municipal Complex will occupy property once or currently home to iconic businesses such as Archer's Meat & Catering and the Nickel Plate Bar & Grill. A five-story apartment building with 241 units, 10 townhouses, office and retail space, and a public parking garage will be built on the north side of 116th, near North and Maple streets.

On the south side, First Internet Bank will build a six-story office building with shops on the ground floor, a 110-room “boutique” hotel and a parking garage.

Archer's closed last year, the Nickel Plate has been sold to a local chain, Lux Resturant group, and a favored coffee shop, Sure Shot, and attached T-shirt maker, Verdagen, moved out about a month ago.

The city and Browning officials said the project will preserve the facades of the vacated businesses and fold into the new development the shops that are still open, like the Fishers Barber Shop. The development will be built around the planned Nickel Plate Trail, a 4-1/2 mile greenway being planned on the railroad corridor that cuts through downtown. A pocket park on the North Side of 116th that often features art exhibits will be relocated to a plaza within the new development.

Fadness said the the city has no plans to widen 116th to accommodate the increased density because traffic congestion isn't expected to increase enough to warrant it. Beside, he said, the goal is to make the area more pedestrian-friendly.

"Our focus is on pedestrians," he said. "Nothing in our traffic counts shows more lanes are needed."

Just five years ago, the city began the recent boom cycle when it built two multistory apartment buildings with first floor shops on either side of City Hall. It has added several office buildings nearby since, and more are in the works.

The development whirlwind is all part of the city's comprehensive plan to have more people live and work downtown, add vibrancy and give the suburb an identity by 2040.

Some residents say it is all too much, too soon.

"I have no problem with progress, but this is just out of control," said Cathi Peterson-White, who has lived in Fishers nine years. "There is already a bunch of stuff squeezed in there. Do you really have to develop every square inch of land?"

Peterson-White said she has taken some of her spending dollars to downtown Carmel, where more local shops have been preserved.

"They do small business better," Peterson-White said.

But some businesses were not complaining Tuesday.

Brooke Magdzinksi moved her shop, Dottie Couture Boutique, into the ground floor of the Depot at Nickel Plate, next to City Hall, which has 242 apartments and eight storefronts.

"The more development there is, the more foot traffic there is. So it is good from a business perspective and for providing more things for me and my family to do," Magdzinksi said.

Fadness said he empathizes with residents who like the traditional downtown and small shops but said his responsibility is to move the city forward.

"We have to adapt and evolve for us to be sustainable in the long term," Fadness said. "We have put a lot of thought into this."

Fishers-based First Internet Bank will move from its current home, a 52,000-square-foot building at 11201 USA Parkway in Fishers, and bring at least 200 employees with it.

In planning documents, the city said it expected the project to provide 450 jobs and pump $33 million a year into the local economy.

Browning thrives on building mixed-use developments, including the Coil in Broad Ripple and Meridian and Main in Carmel.

Construction is scheduled to begin in spring 2019 and be completed in 2021. The mayor’s office will present the plan to the City Council at its December meeting.

Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418. Follow on Twitter and Facebook.